Brokers primed to pounce on crypto if digital asset is put on leash, says CEO of discount broker Espresso
The Indian government has been working on a cryptocurrency bill over the past year.
Mumbai / March 17, 2022 / 14:20 IST
Domestic brokerages will pounce on cryptocurrency the moment it is regulated, said chief executive officer of new-age discount broker Espresso Financial Services backed by Sharekhan and BNP Paribas.“If it is regulated then it's a business that any sane businessperson or any sane business house would get into,” R Kalyanaraman told Moneycontrol in an interview on the sidelines of the Espresso Traders Carnival 2022 in Goa.The adoption of cryptocurrency among Indians has rocketed over the past 18 months led by the emergence of several domestic crypto exchanges and a stupendous rally in the space following the sharp crash of March 2020. As per anecdotal data, as many as 70 million cryptocurrency accounts exist in India making it one of the fastest adopters of the digital asset across the world. As per industry analysts, the value of cryptocurrency holdings of Indians exceeds $5 billion. By comparison, the country has around 80 million dematerialised accounts for investments in the stock market.The Indian government has been working on a cryptocurrency bill over the past year. While the initial intent of the bill appeared to be to banning cryptocurrencies, recent reports have suggested that the government is open to regulating the space as a digital asset.In the budget, India introduced taxation on cryptocurrency trading and investment. The tax, though excessive, was seen as the first sign of the government’s willingness to recognise the asset.“Every broker worth its name will want the cryptocurrency regulation to be absolutely clear, and then have their risk monitoring and compliance systems in place and then they'll probably start offering it on their trading platform,” Kalyanaraman said.Espresso launched services in 2020 as new customers flocked to discount brokers like Zerodha, Upstoxx, and Groww during the lockdown. Kalyanaraman, however, feels discount brokerages are unlikely to become the norm as predicted by many.“Full service-broking model will always remain relevant in this country for the next few decades,” he said.In this context, Kalyanaraman has narrowed Espresso’s focus to customer satisfaction and experience instead of market share or number of users. “For me, what matters is that my customer is giving me a thumbs up for the intent that I'm showing. We did not blow the money as much as one would have as a startup. We chose to be very prudent about our spending,” he added.Espresso is feeling its way into the market, accumulating feedback from customers on platforms like the Traders Carnival where as a sponsor it is keeping its ear to the ground to create features that benefit traders.“We will create a product that our customers are happy to use and we will grow organically via these customers spreading the word about our platforms,” Kalyanaraman said.
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